Thursday 30 May 2013

Breakfast cobbler in a bowl!

Summer is here!!!  Enjoy this delicious breakfast bowl on a patio, balcony or on your cottage dock.  This recipe will feed one person, double the ingredients to share with the family! (It really is too good not to be shared)

2 1/2 tbsp brown sugar (I would have preferred raw honey, but I used the last of my honey yesterday.  I encourage you to try this with another sweetener.)
2 tbsp flax meal
1 pinch salt
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup fruit of choice (I used peach slices and strawberries)
1 1/2 tbsp coconut oil
1 tbsp shredded coconut
1 tbsp chopped walnuts
1 drop vanilla
1 pinch cinnamon
1 tbsp oat flour

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.  Put fruit in the bottom of a pre-greased oven-safe bowl (I used coconut oil to grease the bowl).  Toss  the fruit with the oat flour.  Combine all the other ingredients in a mixing bowl (except 1 quarter of the coconut milk) and mix. Evenly layer the oat mixture on top of the fruit and then pour in the remainder of the coconut milk.  Bake for 35 minutes and broil for an additional 2 minutes to crisp the top a bit.

Bon appétit!
Talia


Tuesday 28 May 2013

Ehhhhh, wake up, doc! Gluten-free breakfast carrot cake.

I have a confession: Bugs Bunny is my idol.  When somebody points a gun in his face he responds by casually munching on a carrot and wryly saying:

"Ehhhhh, what's up doc?"

He reacts in a way that suggests that not only is he confident that he'll get out of this perilous situation, as he has all the other ones before it, but also that he already has a killer idea up his sleeve for outsmarting his latest foe.  I feel that we should all be more like Bugs in the face of adversity.

Fuel your ability to think on your feet, like Bugs, by starting your day right with this delicious and nutritious, carrot-based breakfast idea!!

Breakfast carrot bowl cake:
1/2 cup black or brown rice flour, oat flour, almond flour (equal parts)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 pinch nutmeg
1 tbsp chopped walnuts
1/4 cup gelled chia seed meal
1/4 cup coconut milk 
1 1/2 tbsp raw honey
5 baby carrots
1 tsp coconut oil
1 tsp poppyseeds

Pre-heat oven to 350 F.  Mix together dry ingredients in a bowl.  Add wet ingredients to a food processor and blend until thoroughly mixed then add 4 of the carrots and blend thoroughly.  Add gelled chia seeds to wet mixture and process until just blended.  Shred remaining carrot with a cheese grater and add to dry ingredients.  Combine wet and dry ingredients and put in oven safe bowl.  Put bowl in pre-heated oven and bake for 60 minutes.

Bon Appétit!
Talia


Tuesday 21 May 2013

More pancakes! GLUTEN FREE!

I have a weakness.  Well, several, I guess, but particularly for breakfast food.  Brunch is a major past time of mine.  Crafting the perfect breakfast food is one of my life's passions.  I recently created this concoction after discovering black rice.. and these pancakes are GLUTEN FREE!!!  Yes!!

Black rice and oat flour pancakes:
3/4 cup black rice
3/4 cup rolled oats
2 tbsp raw honey
1 cup coconut milk
1/4 cup gelled chia seed meal
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
2 drops pure vanilla extract
1 tbsp coconut oil

Grind black rice and oats into flour.  Combine all ingredients and blend until thoroughly mixed.  Cook pancakes in a pan or on a griddle on medium heat for three minutes on each side.  Top with maple or fruit syrup and serve!!

Bon Appétit!!
Talia

Thursday 2 May 2013

An unlikely skincare routine...

Coconut oil is my new favourite tool in my skincare arsenal! I started using it on my dry skin in the winter and had such great results, I wondered what would happen if I put it on my face. I know what you might be thinking... Putting oil on your face sounds nasty... And truth be told, you do have to use it sparingly. Slathering a fistful of coconut oil on your face is definitely NOT what I'm suggesting. Also, you have to be careful. I recommend a patch test because I've heard that some people's skin reacts to coconut oil.

So... Why should you consider trying this? First of all, conventional lotions contain a ton of ingredients that can damage the skin... And even cause further irritation and dryness. This was the appeal of coconut oil for me. I have very sensitive skin that gets angry even 10 feet away from the closest fragrance. I've had to switch to unscented laundry soap because of that... And boy do I miss the clean laundry smell :-(
Things in conventional lotions such as; fragrance, cetearyl alcohol and other "fatty alcohols", stearic acid and parabens, can irritate the skin, cause dryness and can even cause premature aging. So, now when you really think about putting that stuff on your face... Does coconut oil on your face seem so gross?

So, here's how I do it: in the morning I use a wet cloth to exfoliate my face and then massage the coconut oil on wet skin (a dime sized portion, very little). I then rinse it mostly off and pat dry, I find that the towel I pat my skin with will absorb the excess. At night I still use face soap to get the city and whatever makeup I might be wearing off my face... But once I've rinsed the facial cleanser off I repeat the coconut oil on wet skin routine. I've found my eyelashes even like it!! Sometimes in the shower, I'll massage the coconut oil on my face and leave it on while I wash up and THEN rinse it off.

So what's the benefit?
The molecules in coconut oil are small enough that they are easily absorbed by the skin. The texture of the oil is also similar to the natural oils the skin produces. Coconut oil is also: antifungal, antiviral and antibacterial and has vitamins and minerals that your skin will eat up!

Convinced?
I hope so!!

Have a happy day!
Talia